LOS ANGELES, CA – When Tracie Hotchner launched the inaugural Dog Film Festival™ in New York City in October 2015, she dedicated it in loving memory to her godmother Joan Rivers, “the ultimate dog lover herself”. Today, the Dog Film Festival™ is proud to announce Melissa Rivers, Joan’s daughter, as the honorary hostess for the Dog Film Festival™. Melissa is also the goddaughter of Hotchner, the founder and president of the Dog Film Festival™.